Ismael Miranda – La Clave Del Sabor (1981)

In salsa's leaner period (the early '80s), Ismael Miranda remained very active and in-demand, and this effort proves that he can stil come up with interesting albums. Ray Santos and Luis Garcia (the two most dominant arranging forces at the time) come up with charts that shine with their usual skill ability. "Galera Tres" (arranged by Ray Santos) is simply superb. "Para Ismael Rivera" is his namesake's homage (composed by C. Curet Alonso) to a mentor a friend; "Amigo, Déjala" (arranged by Javier Vázquez) is a catchy son montuno that brings a traditional flavor to a production in an era of signs of decadence for the musical expression.~José A. Estévez, Jr.